Jul 23 2008
La Tomatina - a tomato throwing festival in Spain
La Tomatina is a tomato-throwing festival that takes place on the last Wednesday of each August in the town of Buñol, in Valencia.
The week-long festival has everything any sane traveller will adore; music, dancing, fireworks, paella cooking contests and, of course, Spaniards launching red fruit at each other.
Week-long festivities surround the day of the tomato-throwing, but the festival doesn’t offically start until someone has climbed to the top of a greased-up wooden pole and reached the ham at the top (yes, that’s right, a ham - the food theme extends beyond tomatoes!).
Tens of thousands of tourists flock to the event each year, to take part in the chaos and mess of La Tomatina. There are few rules to the fight, the primary one being that the tomatoes must be squished before they are thrown, and safety goggles are recommended!
La Tomatina has been an annual feature in Buñol for over 60 years. Nobody knows how this bizarre event began, though theories are rife in the town.
How to get there:
Ferries from the UK go to Bilbao and Santander; take a ferry and enjoy the scenic drive through Spain - around £700 will get a car and two people to Bilbao.
